


we're doing this for each other

by brontidepng



Category: The Fosters (TV 2013)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/F, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Friends to Lovers, Slow Burn, also emma's a no self control and emotional drunk, i dont know how to write in general, i want angst but i dont know how to write angst, let's just pretend theyre 18 years old because i aint writing underage characters, theyre dumb about feelings
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-28
Updated: 2019-06-04
Packaged: 2020-03-20 17:53:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,041
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18997585
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brontidepng/pseuds/brontidepng
Summary: ...And now she’s roped into a plan where she’s the ex-girlfriend.Apparently, now they’re exes, or at least pretend-exes, or whatever the plan is now. She's very confused about the situation, and the alcohol in her system isn't helping.//  it's a fake dating au!! meaning they date for fakesies, and they have fake feelings. until it becomes real feelings and oh the stress that will come. and theyre dumb about it





	1. prom's fun if only Olivia wasn't here

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> (mariana, mariana, emma)
> 
> it starts just before prom, if you remember the text she got from Olivia, and it's why Mariana got the idea in the first place.

Logan’s hot. He’s athletic, muscular, and he lives next door (which is a bonus in Mariana’s book). So _really_ she can’t stop her sudden infatuation with him from growing. You can’t help who you like. It happens too often for her. She’s a romantic at heart. Really just primes her for heartbreak though.

There’s also a ‘but’ to this. She really doesn’t want Logan’s scary girlfriend (apparently her name’s Olivia) to make good on her threats, so she really needs to stop using these weird schemes. Just because it worked for Granddad, doesn’t mean it’ll work for her.

Also she thinks that it may have been a tiny bit rude of her to have an ulterior motive by helping Logan. She’s a feminist, and she’s all for girls supporting girls. But by doing this, she realises she’s kinda a hypocrite, and trying to steal a guy from another girl is not _peak_ feminism in her eyes. This was stupid. She hated it when _Zoe_ (That backstabbing boyfriend stealer™️) whisked Mat away, so she feels terrible for trying to do that with another girl’s man.

However, any feeling of guilt from this simple mistake is quickly replaced by a whole lot of annoyance.

Honestly. She’s put off. Just because Mariana helped him make a video doesn’t mean she totally intended to whisk Logan away. Yes, it _may_ have been done under ambiguous intentions, but she didn’t need to attack her for it. A nice (civil!) conversation would have totally set things straight. She only wanted to show him that she was a nice, helpful, cool, technologically-smart girl next door. And it was a video for Olivia anyways! What right does she have to be particularly aggressive to Mariana when all she did was help Logan make up to her? She should be thankful! ...Or _at least_ be less aggressive than she is right now.

It’s a problem she needs gone. All this stress is going to get to her soon, she knows that, and it’ll eventually get worse if she doesn’t do anything about it. She wants this girl to lay off her.

She pulls the cover over her head. It’s dark, and she can hear Callie’s soft snores in the corner of their room. It’s about 2:43, according to the dim lights of her phone. She’s arguing with herself (in her thoughts of course) plus the late nights/early mornings, she discovered, are usually the best time in the day for her to ruminate on her problems. It certainly can keep her up way into the next morning, and if the issue doesn’t vanish in the next 24 hours, she will get super grumpy. Her family knows to avoid her then when she’s in a mood.

“Cal?” she whispers softly into the air, her voice muffled by the covers. She realises quickly that she doesn’t want to burden Callie with her stupid problems.

She strains her ears for any sound of recognition, any sound that indicates that there is a recently awoken Callie. Nothing. Still quiet, with loud snores echoing in their room. Relief sinks into her body.

She stretches her toes, straightening out her arms against the covers, feels the tiny cracking of joints and gives a small satisfied groan.

There’s still the issue of Olivia.

There’s a presence itching at her side. It lurks where her phone is placed. Heavy pressure creeps into their room from her phone that only she can feel; the feeling of tightness, like the covers of her bed are pushing onto her.

And she remembers the message on her phone. It’s… _God,_ It’s so _deliberately_ nasty, and it just keeps coming back into her mind. Mariana pictures this girl from Logan’s insta; a very pretty girl, following her around with the words ‘bitch’ and ‘thot’ hot on her tongue.

She wouldn’t have let it get to her, she’s heard those words uttered in her direction many times from people hateful of her, hateful of her causing _Nick_. But it all adds up, and she’s starting to believe them. Not the words exactly, but the intent behind those words, blaming her, blaming her for causing mayhem, and drama, amongst many things. She’s always been one to cause problems, after all.

Olivia comes to her mind again; confident, and bold, and tall, and stunning. There’s a twinge, a feeling. She chalks it up to being annoyed.

It’s a feeling she doesn’t like, but she convinces herself to think nothing of it and pushes it away.

Mariana will make a plan tomorrow, but first she needs some sleep.

 

//

 

She thought the situation could not have gotten any worse. She should’ve thought better.

Mariana was safe from Olivia’s threats, because she was living in another state. And ‘sticks and stones’ can’t hurt her if Olivia’s physically nowhere near them.

 _…Unfortunately_ she wasn’t getting off that easily.

Prom is soon, planned for next week, and Logan is coming with Olivia ...which means Olivia is coming with Logan. _Somehow_ they are both coming to prom - a prom she planned - which confirms her theory that Olivia wants to torment her (she’s slightly paranoid about this).

_This sucks._

She’s so not scared of Olivia, but she certainly wants no drama to ruin her prom. She planned this for everybody else to enjoy. If one little dispute between them causes the prom to fail, she’s just… it would feel like the entire universe is against her. She doesn’t need any more reason for her schoolmates to dislike her more than they already do.

It’s just her luck. She’s screwed.

She sighs, exasperated.

 _Think positive thoughts,_ Mariana reminds herself. She really needs to do something, fix this somehow. She just needs Olivia to think that she wasn’t interested in Logan. Any words she says will be scrutinised, so she needs something foolproof, something that crosses off any idea of Mariana pursuing Logan, something that shows she’s not interested in Logan at all.

She’s coming up blank.

Maybe if she says it with enough conviction, it’ll be enough?

Her gaze hardens.

“I _don’t_ like Logan. I don’t want to date him. He’s _yours_.” She said to no one but herself. She relaxes.

A bit more practice, she thinks. He may be hot, but he is so totally not worth the trouble she’s in.

It becomes her mantra for the rest of the week.

 

//

 

The ring on her hand is new, noticeable, and entirely uncomfortable. It’s… very pretty. A wooden, homemade ring has so much sentimental value in it, she can feel it through her finger.

She feels sick.

What was she supposed to feel like? Happy? In love? Emma wants to feel those feelings, tried to force them into her heart, but it’s a distant feeling now. Worry and distress has instead taken up residence in her feelings, taken hold of it, and she feels the physical effects of the clench in her chest, and in her throat. She places her hand on her chest, once again noticing the ring. She pulls it off, and pockets it safely away. No point in losing it.

She loves Jesus, and nothing can change her feelings about him. Except maybe this. Oh god. Can’t he see how quick this is? They’re teenagers, for god's sakes. It’s unexpected, and she doesn’t want this. She has her future to think about. They’re not financially stable. How are they suppose to get married? A marriage in court would be the cheapest option, elope maybe. Nope, nevermind, she never wanted this. Not this early in her life.

And prom’s in the next few days. She’s made excuses, so she didn’t have to wear the ring at school. But Jesus is really insisting on her wearing it for prom. Said that it’ll blend in with her prom outfit. He’s not wrong, of course. Nobody will question the ring during prom, but she knows the implications of wearing it in public. Next thing she knows, he’ll be asking her to wear it all the time. And she couldn’t refuse him if he keeps insisting. It’ll be a hole she keeps digging bigger.

Maybe if she just doesn’t mention it. You know, she could conveniently forget to wear it.

No, no, she can’t do that. Jesus will be upset, and she loves him. She’s in love with him. She loves him, right?

 

Later that week, prom arrives with a bang. Everybody’s excited, dressing up, going with their dates. It feels fancy and extravagant. Plus there’s booze somewhere on the vicinity, hidden away from the parental units.

It would feel fun if only Emma didn’t have her truth to tell. It’s nerve-wracking.

Emma’s decided to tell him as soon as she sees him again. She will say, _Sorry Jesus. I can’t get married to you, not because I don’t love you, but because it’s too soon for me. I hope you understand._

And hopefully he will understand. Because she’s not risking her future with this dumb proposal. She already got confirmation that his parents doesn’t want them to marry either, thank god. So she’ll do this, to spare them any future confusion and heartbreak. She’ll do this for herself. She’s determined not to do anything she doesn’t want. It’s one of her key principles she has. It’s important to her. And he has to see reason.

She smooths down her dress with one hand, and holds a cup full of punch in another. She’s sitting alone, waiting for Jesus to come back to her, so she can sneak them away to explain her feelings. The ring’s tucked away in her purse for now, and she can feel it through the fabric. So she places it on the table, away from her.

Where is he? The music’s loud and the others are dancing, terribly in her opinion. The place is getting stuffy, and all these bodies does nothing to help with the heat. She takes a sip. It’s watered-down.

She spots Wyatt in a corner, surrounded by a few others. He’s swaying, uncoordinated and loose, and looks slightly red. He’s drunk, isn’t he? She sees him pour clear liquid in the cups of the others, and guesses that he’s the provider of drinks for tonight. She sighs, it’s not a party without alcohol involved.

She faces away, slowly looking at the scene before her, and recognises Mariana coming into the hall, all dressed up gorgeously. And very, very alone.

It’s strange to see since Emma’s seen her around school, doing a lot of campaigning. A good cause, in Emma’s opinion, and Mariana has some good arguments about keeping the school public.

The point is, she has a lot of attention on her, so getting dates shouldn’t be an obstacle for Mariana. Although, she hasn’t really been chatting up any boys, from what Emma’s seen. Probably why she’s alone.

Not that she cares. She’s still indifferent about Mariana after their falling out (it’s not as serious as it sounds). She could always make new friends, or you know, try to hang out with the boys at STEM or wrestling.

She watches Mariana walk towards Wyatt, and realises that maybe Wyatt is her date. _Whatever._ She glances away, noticing Jesus approaching her. Time to face the music.

It happens too quickly and too slowly, all at the same time. It’s a blur.

As it turns out, he really didn’t understand, because now they’ve broken up, and Emma feels like utter shit. Dried tears on her face is messing up her make-up, and this feels freaking terrible. Wiping her face does nothing, and she’s sure she looks like a mess. It reminds her of the first time. She hated when they broke up once, and she absolutely despises that they broke up again.

She blinks away her tears.

It’s only wise to drink her feelings, right? Seeking out Wyatt was not too hard, and soon she has the sharp taste flow down her throat.

It’s crappy, so she downs it faster, and the juice doesn’t really mask the taste. It lingers. She isolates herself with self-pity; from groups of people, completely alone, and tipsy. Eyes looking at the ceiling, at the floor, away from anybody’s gaze. She’s reeling from the aftermath, lost and out of her body, releasing the tight grip she had on her cup, the sound of crinkling from her hands.

It’s crappy, but at least it doesn’t feel so bad now, with the fuzziness coursing through her body, and she thinks her night isn’t totally ruined.

That’s a lie she tries to tell herself, and it’s a lie she doesn’t believe. It hurts her so fucking much. And she… she just wants to leave. She wants to rewind time, go find Jesus and beg him not to do this to her again.

She takes another gulp.

It stings, as Emma tries to quieten down her thoughts. Her heart aches, her insides twisting, both at the break up and the shitty alcohol.

And somehow... _Somehow_ she finds herself beside Mariana. Sitting next to her, a small gap between them. There’s concern in her eyes, but in Emma’s fuzzy gaze, she barely registers it.

Mariana starts to speak, and Emma - mind flitting about, unfocused - catches something about a Logan, a text maybe, her plan to ask her exes for help. Her face is sullen, and Emma feels a twinge of sympathy.

And maybe this is the alcohol talking, but she definitely heard something about ex-girlfriends. And Emma feels totally confused, because since when has Mariana dated a girl? Her mind is still cloudy, but it clears slightly; she realises that Mariana didn’t actually say that. Instead, her mouth was moving without her thinking, and she finds that Mariana had perked up to Emma's suggestion (when did she say this?) of having an ex-girlfriend.

...And now she’s roped into a plan where she’s the ex-girlfriend.

Apparently, now they’re exes, or at least pretend-exes, or whatever the plan is now; she’s very confused about the situation, and the alcohol in her system isn’t helping (maybe she should have slowed down her self-pity drinking).

It’s a bad idea, or it would be if she could make up any arguments against it. But she comes up blank, and Mariana is warm when she grabs Emma’s hand, and warm when they’re shoulder to shoulder, walking hand in hand. It’s nice, it’s normal, it’s easy to slip back into.

She can just imagine that it’s Jesus’ hands she’s holding, but the grip is all wrong, and these hands are too soft. But she can’t find herself disliking it, giving it a squeeze, and receiving one in return. It’s reassuring and it’s comfortable.

And she finds herself feeling minutely better, in spite of the day’s events.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> shoot me a comment if you feel i could improve in any areas, or maybe if you think the characters wouldn't do this particular thing in the story. im just curious what you think. thanks for reading!!!
> 
> o/


	2. shes desperate for this to work, and i might be drunk

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (mariana, emma)

They stop at the side of the room, distant from other partygoers, and Mariana gently releases their hands. She moves Emma closer to herself, keeping a hand on Emma’s arm. She notices Emma’s restlessness, as she begins to fidget with her cup. There doesn’t seem to be any liquid left in it. She watches as Emma lets it fall to the ground. It rolls away out of sight.

“Okay, we need to talk more about the plan.” She catches her friend’s (are they friends again?) gaze, stealing Emma’s attention away from her mindless daydream.

Emma nods slowly, unsure, “...Alright. Soooo, um, what was the plan again?”

Mariana repeats the stuff they need to do for this to work. They would need to act like a couple. Stuff like holding hands, being close, being comfortable with each other’s touch. They’ve both always been comfortable expressing PDA with their previous boyfriends, although it was much more private for Emma, and Mariana points out that PDA is a must for them to be believable. They’re essentially ‘girlfriends’ for the night.

“I think that should be enough for it to work.” A short pause. “Is that okay with you?” Mariana asks, not wanting to scare Emma off with her proposition, doesn’t want to push her. She really hopes Emma will be okay with this, or she will have to somehow find another willing participant for this. Basically she needs a miracle.

Emma’s face hardens with determination, and Mariana thinks she sees a twinkle in her eyes. She’s relieved when Emma nods.

With her consent, Mariana slides closer beside Emma, tentatively placing her right hand on her fake-girlfriend’s waist. Practice makes perfect, a phrase that probably doesn’t apply to this, but _whatever._ She needs all the practice she can get for this to be smooth-sailing.

Emma eagerly leans into her touch.

That’s… surprising. But she’s not one to look a gift horse in the mouth.

Mariana slowly traces a finger on her hip, a little hesitant to overwhelm her with touching. As much as she wants this act to be believable, she doesn’t want to cross a line, _ever_ , even if it leaves her in Olivia’s mercy in the process. It’s basic decency, you know, to respect boundaries.

“You sure you okay with this?” She waits for Emma’s consent. Emma rolls her eyes, exasperated, but it doesn’t seem like she is actually annoyed at her. Instead Emma turns to look at Mariana and gives her a dopey smile. She nods once more.

Mariana continues cautiously, feeling a little better now that she thinks Emma is okay with this. She knows she needs this part of the plan to seem real if she wants this to work.

“Yea, let’s do it.” Emma hums softly, further nuzzling into her, their sides pressed against each other even more.

They’re really close together now. This will work, Mariana thinks. _Phew, I really should have thought about the heating in this place. Is it getting hotter in here?_

Mariana snakes her arm away from Emma’s hip and instead offers her a hand. Emma slowly slides a soft hand down Mariana’s arm, making a show of it, and eventually holds it, clumsily intertwining their fingers.

Emma places another soft finger on Mariana’s chin, and moves her head forward, placing a chaste kiss on Mariana’s cheek, and giggles unabashedly. Mariana lets it happen, although she turns her head slightly to act coy. That’s what she thinks she did anyways. It’s all an act, you see. A _very very_ good act.

Mariana’s hoping Emma didn’t notice the trail of goosebumps she left behind from _whatever that was_ . She’s also hoping their _targets_ saw that display of affection (flirting? she doesn’t know what to call it, it sure didn’t look platonic).

They’re holding hands now. So she sets the plan in motion. They both can’t back out now.

She starts guiding Emma towards Olivia and Logan. Mariana wants this to be over _quick_ so she’s anxious to get to them. She takes long, deep breaths, trying to calm herself so she doesn’t give the whole charade away. She feels, rather than see, Emma stagger beside her. She tightens her hold on Emma, preventing a sudden fall, and Emma whispers a soft _thank you_.

She turns to notice Olivia staring at her, a curious look to her. But, it turns suspicious fast when she sees them walking towards herself and Logan.

She’s glad now that Emma seems to be really into this, as she starts to notice other people giving them a quick look-over, eyes on their close proximity, before looking away.

She moves her face next to Emma’s ears, and whispers, “Stay calm, we’ve got this.” She says this more to reassure herself than Emma.

She hears Emma’s loud chuckle.

 

//

 

Mariana is quick. Emma wasn’t sure what to expect, and to be honest, the plan was pretty bare-bone. Mariana just jumps straight into this ‘ex’ act, and it throws Emma for a loop before she schools herself into Mariana’s _lovely and very real_ date of the night. And she’s doing it perfectly, if Mariana’s face was any indication.

“...didn’t know how’d you feel about the fact that I’m actually kinda fluid.” Emma finds that Mariana is an expert in weaving in her lies, and honestly, she’s impressed.

Emma thinks Mariana is nailing it. She’s talking the talk, and showing her off. Just the look on these guys’ faces makes this even funnier to her.

Emma leans into Mariana’s shoulder, resting her head on it. She smiles sweetly at the other couple. The haze is there in Emma’s mind, and she discovers how comfortable Mariana can be. She notices the twist of anger in Olivia’s face, and Logan just seems confused. Good.

She wouldn’t normally be comfortable sidling up to someone else like this in front of others, but she’s _apparently_ throwing all caution to the wind, after the emotional turbulence she’s suffered tonight.

No dwelling in the past - even if it was only an hour or two ago - for now. Back to present reality.

She’s starting to get restless again, which she imagines is coming from the buzz from the alcohol.

_Ugh._

Emma’s getting bored and honestly, this is taking too long. She’s not sure if it’s been 10 minutes or only a few seconds, but she wants to leave. She’s in desperate need for a resupply of liquid courage.

But the trio seems extremely preoccupied with each other, with the shooting of glares from both sides of the party.

Emma turns to look at her ‘ex-girlfriend’, wanting to drag themselves away from this mood-dampening crowd.

There’s a wisp of hair in her fake ex’s face, and it becomes extremely distracting to Emma. It’s there, moving with every breath against it and she has the sudden urge to swipe it away.

She sees no reason not to.

She pulls the hair away, resting her hand on a spot where Mariana’s jaw meets her neck, and notes how soft it feels under her fingers. And she doesn’t register - until Mariana tilts her mouth ever so slightly open - that she’s been watching Mariana’s lips move for awhile now. She glances upwards, discovers curious eyes, and glances back down.

She has a strong urge to kiss Mariana.

She wonders if maybe the drink she had was incredibly strong, or if maybe she’s a lightweight. She decidedly concludes that not even two hours ago, she’d probably find this decision to be an incredibly bad idea. But this is not ‘sober’ Emma, it’s not ‘emotionally stable’ Emma, and it’s definitely not ‘have self-control’ Emma.

And she sees no reason not to.

So she goes for it.

Emma places a firm hand on Mariana’s neck, pulling her forward. She barely notices the slight panic in Mariana’s eyes, her desire clouding her judgement.

She closes her eyes, and feels her lips against Mariana’s. She quickly starts moving them, hungry for the feeling of soft lips.

If she wasn’t a little bit drunk, she might have felt the slight hesitation from Mariana.

But the response that came after - Mariana pressing further against Emma, her hands grasping Emma’s arms, her shoulder, caressing Emma’s face - is all she could feel. It’s all she could focus on.

She slips in her tongue, and hums gently when Mariana reciprocates.

It feels good, so good, and she could keep on going.

She wants more and more. It’s getting sloppy, but she still doesn’t want to stop.

Mariana pushes her away roughly. Emma chases after her lips, pushing forward but meets a resistance from Mariana’s hands.

She opens her eyes. If the surprised looks from the duo didn’t sober her up, the averted gaze from Mariana definitely did. The scene before her holds a tension that she _knows_ they feel too, if their sharp postures were any indication.

This was a bad idea. She’s internally screaming. She must be on autopilot because somehow she still seems calm. She awkwardly quirks a half-smile.

She nudges Mariana from her stupor, and this reanimates Mariana to quickly say some words.

“Yea! Umm okay, let’s go dance.”

Emma tunes out. She might or might not be internally freaking out. In her state of anxiety, she awkwardly holds out a gangly peace sign… _Uhhh..._ She doesn’t know why she did that.

Mariana pulls at her.

They begin walking away from the couple, Mariana apparently done talking to them, and Emma feels herself shutting down from the inside. Her lips are still tingling. _Oh no._

She’s having an out of body experience.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> um i might rewrite somethings if it doesn't feel right later on. right now, it reads okay, the pacing's a bit off but im working on that.  
> thanks for reading!  
> o7


End file.
